Robert Grizzle Memorial
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Obituary - Matt Moore
Prayer - Shannon
Dear Father, we know there is a season and time for everything in this world. Today you have granted us a chance to celebrate the life of our loved one, Robert Grizzle, and we want to thank you.
Even though it is hard to accept his passing, we know that life and death work together according to your will. Father, grant us the peace that surpasses all understanding.
Please give us the strength to share the beautiful moments that we shared with your child, Robert.
In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
Scripture - Shannon
A Psalm of David.
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.
Song “Home” by Chris Daughtry
Open Remarks - Family and Friends
At this time I want to invite anyone who would like to share a thought, story, or comment to come up one at a time to share.
Message - Shannon
One of my favorite memories of Robert is a more recent memory. It was the first day the Lutz family brought their little baby boy Maverick to church. It was pretty much the week after he was born. Robert was the first person in our church family to hold that baby. It was funny because I am pretty sure he was the ONLY person to hold little Maverick that day! No one else got a chance! He walked around this whole sanctuary before service, held him during service, and I’m not sure, but he might have gone home with the Lutz’s and put little baby Maverick down for a nap!
Robert loved children. Robert loved his family. Robert loved his church family.
The Sunday before he passed he came up to my wife with tears in his eyes, gave her a hug, and told her that he just wanted her to know how much he loved her and our family.
Who was Robert Grizzle? He was a person full of love.
Robert was loved. By his family, friends, community, and our church.
He is going to be missed.
As I was praying and remembering Robert, there was a portion of scripture that continued to come to heart. It’s a scripture most of us know well, and I think it’s a scripture that will give us comfort and hope as we mourn our loss.
13 Some people brought their children to Jesus so that he could bless them by placing his hands on them. But his disciples told the people to stop bothering him.
14 When Jesus saw this, he became angry and said, “Let the children come to me! Don’t try to stop them. People who are like these little children belong to the kingdom of God.
15 I promise you that you cannot get into God’s kingdom, unless you accept it the way a child does.”
In these three verses I am reminded of Robert.
Jesus had been teaching to large crowds of people. He was talking about important topics too - things like His coming death, how to become a great leader, overcoming temptations, teaching people about how God views marriage, and he was doing more than just teaching people. He was healing people at the same time!
It was a busy day for Jesus and His disciples. And right in the middle of this busy day, with thousands of people around Him we find our scripture about people bringing their children to Jesus for a blessing.
Why does this scripture remind me of Robert?
Robert knew what mattered most in life.
His life was far from perfect. I know from speaking with him on multiple occasions that there were struggles. In his physical body, we know that Robert was having difficulties. But the struggles of life never stopped him from focusing on what mattered most in life.
You see, life and circumstances tend to over shadow the things that matters most. In our scripture, we see the disciples of Jesus are overwhelmed with the circumstances of the day. They forgot that Jesus cared for everyone, even the little children. They tried to stop people from bringing children to the Lord. They forgot what mattered most to the Lord.
They forgot that everyone matters to God.
And you know what? Everyone mattered to Robert. He knew that everyone deserved to be loved.
If you ever came to this church, Robert was the first and last person you were going to talk to in this building. There was no way you were going to worship in this church without a handshake from Robert and a bulletin in your hand! People mattered to Robert. ALL people mattered to Robert.
Now, he was a good man, and had many good attributes, but I have to tell you, he was NOT a good whisperer! If someone new would visit the church he would be pretty excited. One of his great desires was that this church would be filled with people, so when there was a new family, it was a big deal.
I can remember so many times standing at the back with him during worship and Robert would “whisper” to me asking if I had talked to the new people. Well, the whole church could hear him, including the new people.
I always loved that he loved people so much and he wanted them to be touched by the Lord.
Bringing people to the Lord mattered most to Robert. Speaking to his family on the day he passed, each and every one of them told me of the many times Robert asked if they were coming with him to church on Sunday.
In fact, the very last conversation I had with Robert was the Friday before he passed. He was telling me about his great desire for his grandson to come to church to hear about all the great stories of the Bible.
The scripture reminds me of Robert because he knew what mattered in life. Bringing people to the Lord mattered to Robert.
Another way this scripture reminds me of Robert is that:
Robert had the right kind of Faith
Jesus said something important about faith in verse 15:
15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”
Jesus not only demonstrated that everyone mattered to Him, but that if you wanted to have a relationship with Him that you need to have faith like a child.
Sometimes we get the idea that we need to know everything before we make a decision to follow Christ. Here’s the truth - we can’t know everything. Some things are unexplainable. God can be mysterious. In fact, because we don’t always know God’s plans, we can get angry with God or blame Him for the unexplained things of life.
Jesus is teaching us that we need to trust Him.
Like a child depends and trusts his parents, we need to depend and trust the Lord.
Robert came to everything we did here at the church.
Bible Study - he was here.
Sunday School - he was here.
Sunday Morning Service - he was here.
Cleaning out a room in the basement - he was here.
Swapping out a toilet - he was here.
If he saw a car in the parking lot - he was here!
Many times after a bible study or service I’d have a conversation with Robert. He’d tell me that he didn’t know how we could remember all the things written in the Bible. He’d tell me that he might not be able to quote all the scriptures but he knew that Jesus loved him and that was all he needed to know!
To me, that’s faith! It’s trusting in free gift of salvation that was given by the Lord.
Think about a child who’s been given a gift, how do they receive a gift? Imagine it’s all wrapped up in shiny paper with a big bow on top.
They are excited. They receive it with anticipation, joy, and with thankfulness in their heart. They don’t believe they deserve it, but they are grateful it’s for them.
This is a picture of how we come to the Father. We know that we don’t deserve the great gifts in store for us, but we know He loves us and desires to give us great things.
Robert understood the gift of Salvation through faith.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
I from speaking to Robert, that he would want you to know that God wants you to experience the free gift of Salvation. Many times in these different meetings Robert would share how the Lord changed his life. That he was once lost, but when he come to Jesus with faith as a child, his life was forever changed.
9 If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.
Salvation comes by declaring Jesus as the Lord of your life, surrendering completely to Him, repenting, and living your life openly telling people of the great gift you’ve recieved.
Robert was saved by grace through faith.
The last thing in this scripture that reminds me of Robert is verse 16:
16 Then Jesus took the children in his arms and blessed them by placing his hands on them.
Robert has been blessed by the Lord
While Robert was here with us, he would tell us that he was blessed. But I tell you today that the blessings we walk in while we are alive are nothing compared to the blessings that we can be assured are waiting for us in the presence of the Lord.
Christians should not fear death. In fact, as believers, we might identify with the Apostle Paul who looked forward to being with the Lord.
23 I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me.
Believers should long for heaven like a prisoner longs for freedom, like a sick man longs for health, like a hungry man longs for food, like a thirsty man longs for a drink, like a poor man longs for a payday, and like a soldier longs for peace.
Why? Because in the presence of the Lord is rest and peace.
Revelation 14:13 (CEV)
13 ...the Lord will bless everyone who has faith in him when they die.” ... “Yes, they will rest from their hard work, and they will be rewarded for what they have done.”
We have a hope that goes beyond this life.
As we mourn the loss of Robert, we must remember that because of the faith he placed in Jesus, he is experiencing the reward of living in the presence of God in a place we call heaven. Robert is at peace. His struggle is over. We can find peace in knowing that he is at rest in the arms of his Savior.
Just as Jesus blessed those little children on that busy day, He has blessed Robert with an eternal home.
But what about those of us who remain. We miss him. Our hearts break with sadness knowing that everything has changed. Where is our hope?
The Bible gives us hope. It tells us that if we are believers that one day we will be reunited with our loved ones who have passed.
13 My friends, we want you to understand how it will be for those followers who have already died. Then you won’t grieve over them and be like people who don’t have any hope.
14 We believe that Jesus died and was raised to life. We also believe that when God brings Jesus back again, he will bring with him all who had faith in Jesus before they died.
Family, I know you are grieving the loss of your Husband, Father, Brother, and Grandfather. My prayer is that the Lord would give you peace, comfort, and strength in the coming days.
I know for a fact that Robert would want you to know that you mattered most to him, that he wanted you to have faith in Christ like he did, and that one day you will get to see him again when you’re reunited in the presence of God Almighty.
Song “If tomorrow never comes” Garth Brooks
Closing Prayer - Shannon
God, our Father, we want to thank you for the life of Robert. We thank you that because of your great mercy, we are not saying “goodbye,” but instead we are saying “see ya later.” We know that he has passed from this life but is not gone forever.
We commend his spirit to you: sustain his soul and enfold him in your love until we meet again at Jesus’ feet.
Until then, may your arms encircle our family and friends. Hide us under your wings in this season of sadness and loss. Be our guide through the days ahead. Father we give you all the honor and glory. Amen.